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.EDUCATIONAL ISSUESMany undocumented students have lived in the United States for five or moreyears, and despite their participation in the K 12 education system, they tendto demonstrate lower educational attainment than their U.S.-born or docu-mented immigrant student counterparts.Fifty percent of undocumented youthdo not complete high school for various reasons, including dropping out andnonenrollment in secondary education.9 Thus, they have lower high schoolcompletion rates than U.S.-born and other immigrant students.About 65,000 undocumented students graduate from high school every year,while another 13,000 to 16,000 do not complete high school.Only 20 percentof undocumented high school graduates in a given year will go on to enroll incollege.While 75 percent of U.S.-born and other immigrant students experiencesome postsecondary education, almost half of all undocumented high schoolgraduates do not pursue any type of higher education.10Although access to college is limited for undocumented students, many haveaspirations to attain higher education.Many are academically competitive, andheavily involved in extracurricular activities and community service: In 2004,seventeen high school valedictorians in California were undocumented.11 Yet,they face a significant barrier: because of their lack of legal residency status,undocumented students are ineligible for state and federal financial aid.12Undocumented students are denied access to loans, grants, and work studythe most common ways that students pay for college.Further, though undocu-mented students may have lived in one state for most of their lives, their Education 255undocumented status leads to the inability to provide proper proof of residency,which results in students being expected to pay higher nonresident college fees.While lack of financial aid often deters undocumented students from pursu-ing higher education, those who do attend college often experience difficulties.Most students often cannot find work because of their undocumented status.Those who do work, often inconsistently attend school.Student enrollmentstrategies include alternating work-school cycles.13 For example, undocu-mented students demonstrate varying commitments to work and school depend-ing on their financial situation.One strategy includes working one or more jobswhile simultaneously attending school.Another method entails working full-time and/or having multiple jobs to save enough money to enroll in school fora shortened academic term, only to postpone enrollment in a subsequent termwhen money becomes scarce.Yet, the ability to sustain such work-school strate-gies is dependent on the availability of stable work opportunities.Like manyimmigrants, undocumented students are potentially subject to employmentabuse and unfair labor practices and are particularly vulnerable because of theirimmigration status.STATE AND FEDERAL LEGISLATIONThere have been efforts to alleviate the financial difficulties that undocumentedstudents experience.In some states, there is legislation in which undocumentedstudents can apply for special student status within their institution so that theymay qualify for in-state resident tuition.In 2001, Texas was the first state to passa law extending in-state tuition to undocumented students.It is also one of twostates that offer limited state financial aid the other being Oklahoma.14 How-ever, 40 percent of all undocumented students live in California, as does themajority of Asian American population.15 Thus, it is important to examine thefinancial options for undocumented students in California.In California, undocumented students can apply for AB540 status.CaliforniaAssembly Bill 540 (AB540) passed in 2001 and allowed undocumented stu-dents, in addition to out-of-state U.S.citizens and permanent residents, to beeligible for in-state tuition fees at any California public college or university.Students can gain AB540 status if they attended a California high school forthree or more (consecutive or nonconsecutive) years; have or will graduate froma California high school or have attained a General Equivalency Diploma(GED); have registered at or are currently enrolled at an accredited Californiainstitution; and filed or will file an affidavit as required by individual institu-tions indicating their intention to apply for legal residency.However, unlikeTexas and Oklahoma, undocumented students in California are not eligible forstate financial aid.Other states that offer similar provisions include Illinois,Kansas, New York, Utah, and Washington.16Despite increasing public and government awareness, legislative efforts toexpand access to financial aid have come in the form of unsuccessful state pro-posals.Two versions of the California Dream Act, an effort to give undocumented 256 Encyclopedia of Asian American Issues Todaystudents access to financial aid, passed through the legislature but were vetoed byGovernor Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2006 and 2007.These versions of the legis-lation would grant students access to institutional aid (e.g., merit-based scholar-ships through the university).Previous versions have included access to loans,work-study and noncompetitive Cal Grants.Other states, including Arizona andMinnesota, have also attempted to pass similar legislation.There have also been proposals to expand access to financial aid on the fed-eral level while also providing undocumented students a path to citizenship.These attempts have also been unsuccessful.In October 2007, the U.S.Senatefailed to pass the stand-alone version of the Development, Relief and Educationfor Alien Minors (D.R.E.A.M.) Act bipartisan legislation that would haveoffered undocumented students a pathway toward citizenship.17 Various Asiangroups such as the Korean Resource Center and the Asian Pacific AmericanLegal Center in Los Angeles support the D.R.E.A.M.Act.Before the bill failedto pass, the D.R.E.A.M.Act had also been proposed through various compre-hensive immigration reform plans.Had the D.R.E.A.M.Act passed, eligibleyouth would then have six years of conditional status to complete a minimumof two years of higher education or military service to then be eligible to applyfor permanent residency
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